Pianissimo device for player pianos



F. A. WESSELL.

PIANISSIMO DEVICE FOR PLAYER PIANOS.

APPLICATION FILED MAYI9. 192lv Patented May 2 1922.

et e VSA'TEIS FERNANDO e weseemu, 01* RED BANK, NEW JERSEY.

To azzwiwm it-ma am te "Be it l'z newhth'zit I, Fhhhtmee A. WEss'hLL,

a; 'eitizel'i 6f the UfliteT Stittes', residing in P Red Bank, NewJereey, hete invented certain new and fils'efifl Improvements in itPianis- V simo Device for Prayer Pianos, 'of'which Ne. 566, 928,titt-t'edsep't'ehther 1, {1896, end greeted to Adetn Nickel therei's"shewn end "O'pmeht "6f the preseftt iliveritieh; the 1 0st .motionprevei 'tive device andv the supplemental or teheien adjusting devicehave not the fehetving is e. 's peeificftiOn31feference Htd to the&Cc0mpttn'ying drawing, teeming a- {heft hereof:

\ ZFn Lettere Patent 6f the United States,

ti'on in the hiahb aetiiiii Wheh the Soft pedel is ittuated to aise theh'afiimefs int"o short stroke ,position, wild in Letters Patent (if theUiiit'ed' *Stat'eSENet, 585,829, dated July 7 6,

1897, also; @i'tfited to Adaih Nickel, there [is shbv'tih ahd desei'ibedin coh'iieetion with the mehtal device feittssieting the pre' er re- 0:?the keys when the sbft pede is in hpefat ieh end the hemmei eei e raisedto: 'shoit Stroke poeitieh. iBoth "(if these inven- "tiehs weredeveloped befor th tie- -f player pittites and until new, ihz'th vdevelh'eeh applied to pletyer piahd aetions in 'Which,a-s is newus11a1lythe'case,the hemmer i est rail; by which the ha mers ere 5111ported in short 'troke position as Well as whit-eerie hammers e t one ptieh 6f the "scale shortetioke poeition ithd the hammers of the otherportion ofjthe settle,

fuilhtiOke .tp'esition is' divided in {order that thematic oisole Yefiect's may be produced iii which the meTqdy runs; reinaihiin et rekee litojmg Itzis the 'ohje'et of this inmbtidh preve ttve .de tie-e' it theybe, the "supplem ntal oi tehsio n adjusting de'viee ele y me 'he a pliedand operated ja'r'actl- :c ily iii cbhileeti'oh with the hammers, a 'nd,

it they be, the keys also, of either ortion ofthe S6316, when the pia ois hein played 'by meehehieel devices, while the efifiheis and keys (ifboth 'p'bi'ti'ons 6f the settle may hayetheir action controlled by theshift pedal in the ttshahf hehher whenjthe pitme iepleyed me uelly Theinventio will be full deserihed hereinafter with refer'efieetb the ac-'feefnptiiying drew-tu in which it illne- TSpecificttioxi ef-tettersie'tentf t d httpiieatienihleii mey'is is'zl. seriaiw'e. 470,991.

immislltio DEV iEE F03 PLAYER PIANos;

they 2," 19252;.

ipi'a o' ectien whieh embo die'e the inven'tien as 1s necessary toenableth'e invent-i011 to be understood, the supporting rail fo'r thehammer fi'e-ngee being partl broken ewayttnd jmost'of the hammers.being- Oinitted to' Sh w P rts beneath; I V

*;i l ee m d g heh e i l i'e' 5 3 detail View of means tvhei'e hy theends of the two parts 6f the lost metibi'i ipi'et' ehtive red aremaintained preper relatlon whllfe being capable of ihd'epefidentoperation. I Figures 6 and a' which re's ppetted by h fixed fall 0?, thehammers heii'lg actuated, thi'b-ugh The" hem ers h are ive-tea as heh'etin the usual i termediate deviees het heeeseet to-hedesefibe'd i11detail, by the wiplbehs b, which in turn are ztcz'tuated thro'ii gh thesupplemental, 10st motipn levers 5", by the iisila-l pettl'y roken 5 7the detail views Of-inea ns for; stippertmgfthe divided sprihg teheion'iod ajnd -ma;inttining the a,djaeei1t ends in proper relatidn.

ee js'teh screws-e of the keys 0. The h ht- 'mei s are sup o tediioimeilyhy the "Wip pens slightly above the rest fail which iii 'aplayer piano, is divided, consisting ef "two linde pehdentiylhdvehlesections (Z and d Each k se'etio'n, d fa-hd dQ-is carried by two qr more1 hi1 the frame, members 6, The Test rtjil 'cZ, .cZf be divi ed-fat anypdint which Fs'uit' the iano heathen thet'we pettsget the h operatedeither independently: or to- ;i'etti playing, the two seetions', of therail ne 1 gethe'r eenditiehsmey require. Fer operf jation ef the two ofthe rest rail to-' eether; e by the soft pedal f'ihmehuei playing 6 17by a common pneuina't-ief in median be provided, at edj eeht ends, withh gtete 6Z tt hieh iil't j be ehgegedhy a eeihmen litter rodefa ep retedeither by the edit pedal if Qif by at piieun iatic f, in the 'uutlmanner, the pirehinttie being suitably iee'nne'cted t0 I plained herein.As the fingers d of the rest rail sections rest upon the upper end ofthe tion (Z or d of the rest rail, each section I may be provided with afinger (Z resting stroke position.

on a lifter (Z which is controlled by a pneumatic d. The latter isoperated and controlled in the usual manner so that either section ofthe rest rail (Z, d can be moved to occupy the proper relation withrespect to the corresponding hammers a when in short One of the bellcrank levers d of each section d, d of the rest rail, preferablytheouter lever, is arranged to operate through an intermediate lever g inthe same manner as described in the several Letters Patent abovementioned, the corresponding section of the divided lost motionpreventive rod k, h, whichco-operates with the lost"mo' tion preventivelevers 12' above mentioned. The two sections it and h, of thelost-motion preventive rod are supported by swinging arms h so as to becapable of movement separately or together, and in order that theadjacent ends of the divided rod may be held in proper relationregardless of the supporting devices, so. that the rodmay be divided atany point to correspond with the division of the hammer cushion rail,there is 'fixed in each adjacent end'ofthe two sections a right angledfinger k the bent ends of the fingers, in alignment with the bearings ofthe supporting arms k being received in a sleeve h which may be fixed bya set screw 7&5 to one of the fingers. The

ends of the rod sections are thus held in proper relation while therrodsections are free for independent movement, because the bent ends of thefingers are in line with the axis of movement and one is loose ,inthesleeveh. I l

The spring tension rod or rock shaft is'also formedin two sections 5 andi, which are independently supported in suitable bearings indicated atthe line of division between the two sections being formed to correspondV with the line of division of the rest rail (Z,

d and lost motion preventive rod h, it. Each section 2,2" has a'flange ito act, as described in said Letters Patent No. 585,829, upon thesprings. 1' of the wippens for the purpose of assisting in the return ofthe keys. In

order that the two adjacent ends of the rod or rock shaft '2" may beheld in alignment regardless of the line of division between the twoparts with respect to the supporting 7 ,devices, the two adj acent endsmaybe bored to receive an axial in 2' which maintains the two sectionsof the rod in alignment,

but does not interfere with the independent movement or the twosections; because it divided rest railtoshort Stroke is in the axis ofmovement and is loose in one or both sections. 7

It will now be understood that the two sections of the divided rest railcan be operated either independently of each other or both sections ofthe lost motionpreventive. 'rod and the corresponding section or, both"sections of the tension adjusting rod, can

be moved to corresponding position. 7

I claim as my invention: I 1. In a piano action, the combination withthe hammers and. their actuating devices, of adivided rest rail, adivided lost motion preventive rod and co-operatingdevices,

operative connections 7 whereby each section of the lost motionpreventive rod is actuated with the corresponding section of therest,

rail and means to move the sections of the independently or together.

position:

2. In apiano action, thecombination with the hammers and their actuatingdevices, of a divided rest rail, a divided lost motion preventive rodand co-operating devices,

divided rest rail independently to short stroke position and commonmeans to move both sections 7 of the divided rest rail together to shortstroke position.

3. In a piano action, the combination with the hammers and theiractuating devices, of a divided rest rail, a divided key compensatingrod with its co-operating devices, operative connectlons between eachsection of the rest rail and the. corresponding section of the keycompensating rod, and means 7 to move the sections of the divided restrailstroke 'position independently or' to short togethen, V

i 4. In a piano action, the combination with the hammers and theiractuating devices, of a divided rest rail, a: divided tension adjustingrod with; its co operating devices, operative connections between eachsection of the rest rail and the corresponding section of the tensionadjusting rod, means to move each section of the divided rest railindependently to short stroke position and common means to move bothsections of the divided rest rail together to short stroke position; l Vi 7 1 5. In a piano action thecombination'with the hammers and their"actuating"devices, ofadividedjrest rail, meansto support the sections ofthe divided rest rail independently, fingersrat the adjacent ends of thedivided rest raiha common litter acting preventive rod, means to supportthesections of sa'idrod to swing independently of each other, operativeconnections between the sectionsof the rest rail and the correspendingsections of said rod, right angled fingers secured to adjacent ends ofsaid rod with their bent ends in alignment with the axis on which thesections of the rod swing, and a sleeve receiving the bent endsof bothof said fingers.

This specification signed this 17th day of May, A. D. 1921.

FERNANDO A. WESSELL, I p

